Halloween, called Halloween in Brazil, is a party with dark themes and celebrated annually on October 31 .
Origin of Halloween
The origin of the Halloween party has a long history, since it has been practiced for over 3 thousand years.
It emerged with the Celts, people who were polytheists and believed in several gods related to animals and the forces of nature.
The Celts celebrated the Samhain festival , which lasted for 3 days, starting on October 31. In addition to celebrating the end of summer, the celebration of the Celtic year, which began on November 1, was also celebrated.
It was believed that on that day the dead rose and took possession of the bodies of the living. For this reason, costumes were used and the party was filled with dark artifacts with the main purpose of defending themselves against these evil spirits.
Later, during the Middle Ages, the Church began to condemn the event, and hence the name “Halloween”.
During the Middle Ages, healers were considered to be wizards and for standing against the dogmas of the Church, they were burned at the stake.
Thus, in an attempt to remove the pagan character from the feast, the church made changes to the calendar, so that All Saints’ Day began to be celebrated on November 1, which previously happened on May 13.
Hence the name Halloween stems from the combination of the words hallow , which means “saint”, and eve , which means “eve”.
With the colonization of American lands, tradition was included in the culture of America, especially in the United States.
It is interesting to note that the Halloween tradition has been passed down from generation to generation, since there is nothing written about it.
History of Halloween in the United States
In the United States, the Halloween tradition is very strong. It was brought by Irish immigrants in the 19th century. Since then, the party has been the biggest hit.
Children wear costumes and knock on house doors saying the traditional phrase: “trick or treat?” ( trick or treat , in English). The game consists of asking for sweets, threatening to commit a prank on anyone who denies the treats.
The houses and streets are decorated with dark themes (witches, skulls, mummies, vampires, ghosts, etc.). One of the most emblematic marks of the party is the large pumpkins with faces and candles inside.
Currently, the celebration has great commercial value and the date is a public holiday in the United States.
In addition to the United States, the party was broadcast by several countries in the world, having a strong tradition in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Traditions, Fantasies and Symbols
The children’s request for sweets is related to the ancient Celtic tradition. As a way of appeasing evil spirits, people offered them food. Celtic women made a cake called a “soul cake”.
The tradition of candle inside the pumpkin comes from Irish folklore and is related to the figure of “Jack of the lantern”. However, in the original story the pumpkin was a turnip.
Jack was a drinker who, by deceiving the devil, managed to escape hell. When Jack died, he was not accepted into heaven, so his soul wandered through the nights using a flashlight to light the way. The lantern was made with a turnip.
Given the abundance of pumpkins at the time of the party in the United States, they took care of the party decorations.
The main symbols associated with the celebration are pumpkins with candles, the costumes of witches, skulls, mummies, ghosts, zombies, bats and cats. In addition, the most used colors are black, purple and orange.
History of Halloween in Brazil
Although Halloween is not a tradition in Brazil, there are many themed parties that take place on October 31st today.
This was due to American influence and is therefore a recent celebration in the country. However, it is not yet compared to the festivities that take place in the United States. Before it was not celebrated, but for 20 years it has become a habit.
One of the greatest drivers of this culture was the language courses in the country. In many language schools, students celebrate the date related to English and American culture.
The Saci Day was introduced in the country in 2003 through the Federal Bill No. 2762. The idea was to celebrate something that belonged to national folklore and, therefore, is celebrated on the same day of Halloween: October 31st.
Halloween Day Activity
How about proposing to your students this Word Search game ?
Check the answers!
Answer
